Composite structures, such as those that are constructed of fiber reinforced composite materials, typically are formed by conforming pre-cured or partially cured flexible sheets of composite material to a rigid mold, and then curing the composite material. Due to the nature of conforming a generally planar sheet of material to a mold having contours, including complex contours, it often is difficult to avoid imparting undesirable wrinkles to the composite material. The removal of undesirable wrinkles is difficult and time-consuming, and heretofore has been accomplished by hand-working the composite material in an effort to move, and eventually remove, the wrinkles. Moreover, the skills needed for such hand-working are generally undefined and self-taught through numerous hours of trial and error. Such wrinkling or other anomalies created during forming may not be acceptable to meet the performance requirements of the final composite structure.